When singer-guitarists Kate Pillsbury and Emilee Petersmark started performing as a folk duo about a year ago at the Chinese restaurant in Grandville where they worked, they realized they clicked together vocally.

“We knew right away that we were meant to sing together,” Petersmark recalled. “Once we started playing together, Kate said, ‘I’ve met my musical soulmate.’”

After they asked “the boys” — drummer Dan Rickabus and banjo player Tom Gunnels — to join them, followed soon after by bassist Ben Zito, The Crane Wives were born.

“We’ve been a family ever since. It was phenomenal,” said Petersmark, 23. “I’ve played with a bunch of people and a bunch of different bands, and this is the one. This is it.”

Many listeners clearly agree, because the organic Grand Rapids indie-folk outfit with the distinctive sound has generated a real buzz at its performances the past several months.

With release of the group’s impressive debut album, “Safe Ship, Harbored” — recorded at Sound Post Studios where Rickabus once worked — that buzz is liable to grow exponentially. The album’s edgy folk-rock and gorgeous harmonies have an inescapable, mesmerizing quality that’s liable to attract attention far beyond West Michigan.

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Although all five musicians grew up and started playing music in the metro Detroit area, they all either graduated from or still are attending Grand Valley State University. And while they boast different musical backgrounds, they’ve all fallen in love with the rootsy, Americana vibe that drives their original music.

“I would attribute most of our uniqueness to the vocal harmonies of the girls, pretty much spot-on all the time,” said Zito, 23. “What our live show has is that we’re all friends up there.”
People notice that “uniqueness” quickly.

“It’s pretty unbelievable,” Zito said. “I’ve never been in a group that’s received such a reaction. People are just eating or having their drinks, and halfway through the set you realize that everyone’s just watching you and they’re not even talking.”

Added Petersmark: “We’re so fortunate that people actually like the music. It’s amazing to get such a positive response. There’s this huge network of people willing to put in a good word for us.”

And yes, the band’s name is partly a reference to “The Crane Wife,” an album by influential Portland rock band The Decemberists, which counts Petersmark as a huge fan.

But it also reflects the Japanese folk tale about an injured crane nursed back to health by a man who later falls in love with a woman who appears at his door after he releases the crane back into the wild. In one of many twists, the woman is the crane who uses her feathers to weave a beautiful fabric the couple sells to survive.

The story ties in perfectly with The Crane Wives’ approach, which draws heavily on the “literary folk movement” spearheaded by The Decemberists.

And all things being equal, band members would be thrilled to turn their folk-movement passion into a full-time pursuit.